Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-08-25
IN AN EXPRESS CAR,
What the Express Messenger Has to
Say About Newspaper Men-His
Method OF Handling Basiness.
The Lights and Shades of an EIpressmaz's
Li2e-SigninG Under Dificulties-Some
Duser Thin gs shipped by Queer Peo-
pie to Queer Places.

=
pie to Queer Places.
yes" s&id the express messenger, as
ne fixed chair in lis car for THIS Ga
zETTE aeribe, so thst It was IS comfor-
table as red and ,2lue hammock, 81
have been holding down this run fer 6
good While now. l can almost tell by
intuition Ulen we are nearing station;
II measure the distance 6y my work,
guess, because il is pretty much the same
every day. Here, put your hoofs on that
. bundle Of bedding, rear back and you will
De ae comfortable and s1ug IS though
you were Z q Pullmau sleeper. You.
can't hurt tle sste but Ssve TO get into
it at every station and would have O
disturb you, end you would not ike that,
! know. l nave had many q newspaper
man ride with ne, and they eli ike com
fort end can stand world % rest"
"And ask questions ~ Eentured the
scribe. sitter borrowing. the messengers
coat, upon which TO pillow cl3 massive
brow.
"A.k questions? No. TIE thorough
bred newspaper man neIer ASKS cues
tiors. When he wants TO nd ont any
thing he gives you to understood that ne
knows eli a5Olt Il, n 5aGh ,o-dly usy
and with such sympathetic eEi Datroniz-
ing COndesCension, thai you nus 10 ard
tell him all aGOut it n order to acqu!t
yourself CT the charge o. desc ignorance
implied N his Danne. o. speech and sp-
parent soitCitade Tor your lack ot ia
formation. There are some lid newspa-
per Zen who ask more questions tl4l 3
parrot, put they seldom knox What they
are talking abcat, and l pay little atIen-
ton TO them. I'm easily bored BY any
one WhO tries TO make me talk shop
When ! have something else to do"
Here The whistle 0leW for the approach
ing station; IVY express friend re&ched
behind MIN TO where q brasG. chain was
attached to the straps on the Waist OF his
pants, run oct his arm, letting the chain
slip through his fingers unit, ne reached
the end upon which the key to MS safe
was attached opened the cumbersome
/ looking CID iron box and picked UP his
/ BOOK n which the money packages had
already been y.laced for tina station, and
approached the door Just SIS the car
reached the platform. Here Le exchanged
boOEs with TIE agent, looked hurriedly at
/ the packages enclosed, reCeiptilg for
them and Ell tae while designating with
one feet the articles CT freight Which were
piled conveniently al the door,
an. which the porter trans
ferred TO pair of trucks on the
platform. While the performance was
gong on, the agent on the platform was
examining and receipting Eor tae black
| lettered money packages and tie big, red,
| DraZen-faced c. o. DIS Ooh, how | hate
them, which he had received from the
nessenger. He had to sign his name hall
dozen times and it was no easy matter
Hack and bus drivers were shouting
hotel dTummers whooping up the praises
| Of their respective hostelries, the newG-
! boy and the peanut veGder fitted around
and the gil with the Tue dress and the
! three sscnAIs did her level b, st to add, n
/ her modesJ way, to the confusion. I3e
agen5 gOt down MS name once and half
when ne was interrupted by the fat v7o-
man with the big basket iO-tilg him ne
stepped back lust in time to hear the in
dignant "oh" of the young lady who
walked into his arms. Extricating aim-
self from this ents2gled alliance, with al
apology, and mental reservation which
never appears in q crest religious, daily
be was bayonetted by the preachers um-
brell2 which that deYOu4 gentleman carried
undeT his arm, ald he finished recGipting
Cor tAe packages dancing on one foot, the
other having been mashed into mInct
meat 0y the tall granger with tn,
J cspaciOus saddle-riders swung on his
, shoulders.
san a-b-o-a-r-d :" shouts the con
ductor.
"Gimme your book, and II sign it VI
while you throw on your freight" ex
claims the messenger.
The agent hands him the freight book
takes his and another process at mutua
receiptiDg is gone through with. The bel
is now ringing, vehicles sTe leaving IN
depot, the train moves cat slowly and
, just es the express car passes the end 0
the platform the messenger and agen
finish signing, exchange books, and Of
we go.
| watch my messenger friend IS | Ii
G quietly on his extension chair with N
: feet propped comfortably upon some goo
q woman's feather bed which is tight
rolled up in most disreputsble lookin
IL cotton quilt. He makes a dive for hi
key chain, like woman reaching for be
train, end opens his safe. Gle didH
haye 10 lock it; he knew | would not dis
turo the money packages, but he la
:, locked it before turning his back on i
through force Of habit, l presume II
o deposits his valuables, takes out thos
destined to the next station, arrange
them in his book; arranges his frelgt
way bills in order, placing those goin
beyond his run IN C. pile together; regis
t, tiers in book kept for the purpose &
{ way bills, and those for Immediate use
puts under rubber string which hole
s them firmly and conveniently sorts OF
d his freight, placing what is 10 be left ,
next station near the car door, me h.
Is already locked his safe and when all
J. ready he sits down with:
at bores NE to talk shop above q
lie things. The unbroken monotony
= handling 2 run is enough, without havir
to talk about it,"
ID was surprised to see him return to Il
n very spot where he left of his former CO
versation. His mind must have be-
fhNrOuuhlV pnCaped in tho dut1es no